The present invention relates to halogen worklights and is more particularly directed to arrangements for opening the worklight to replace a halogen bulb.
Halogen worklights have become popular for use in such varied settings as construction jobs, industrial plants, automotive and auto body repair shops, artist and photographic studios, and projects around the home. Such worklights are typically operated at the nominal voltage of the electric utility mains (typically 120 Volts in the United States) at power levels ranging from around 150 Watts at the low end to 600 Watts or greater in a single lamp housing. The halogen bulbs themselves have a comparatively high operating temperature, and consequently in such an operating environment it is not uncommon for them to burn out and have to be replaced from time to time—an operation commonly referred to as re-lamping.
Typical halogen worklights have a lamp housing with an interior bulb chamber that is lined with an internal reflecting surface, in front of which are disposed one or more halogen bulbs. The housing is formed with an exit window through which the light is projected by the reflecting surface. The housing is frequently box-shaped although other shapes are possible, such as a truncated conical shape, and the exit window is often rectangular although circular or oval shapes are also found. The exit window is covered by a protective glass shield, in front of which extends a protective grill. A typical such worklight is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,243,507 of Atkins et al.
A number of constructions are known for permitting the lamp housing to be opened for re-lamping through the exit window. In some models the glass shield, or the glass shield and protective grill, are mounted in a sturdy peripheral frame, commonly referred to as a bezel, which is secured to the lamp housing about the exit window. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,448,463 of Leen; 5,455,756 of Sumer et al.; 5,205,645 of Lee; D349,972 of Stekelenburg; 5,195,823 of Sidabras; D355,502 of Liao; D345,226 of Tsao; D375,377 of Leen; D385,640 of Leen; 5,695,278 of Grossman et al.; and 5,845,989 of Leen. In some of these constructions the bezel is completely removable from the housing to permit unobstructed access to the bulb in the bulb chamber. In other constructions the bezel is rotatably secured to the housing so that it may be rotated or pivoted to an open position permitting such access. In yet other constructions no bezel is used at all. Instead the protective shield and grill are held on by clips. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,868,727 of Ponds et al. and 5,243,507 of Atkins et al.
Such halogen worklight designs face the common problem that the worklight body, bezel, protective shield, and/or grill can get particularly hot during use, and users are often anxious to re-lamp before the worklight has sufficiently cooled.